Training Rides 2016

Not sure if you can handle a week-long ride? Feeling a bit out of shape? Come join our training rides! They are for anyone who is interested in Love in Motion, not just registered riders. Training ride coaches will be on hand to help novice riders. We recommend a voluntary $3 donation to offset the cost of organizing these rides. All donations will go towards fundraising for the tour. If you need more information, or if you want to help out, please contact Tim Leung (Cyclist Preparation Program) at tim@timleungjr.ca.

Our first training ride is a leisurely stroll from Cornerstone Chinese Alliance Church in Markham to around the Toronto Zoo. Most the route is either on residential or low-traffic streets, so this will be a perfect chance for novice riders to get yourself in shape, and to get to know your bike better. The first half of the route is mostly downhill, and the second half is a gentle ascend back towards CCAC. Training ride coaches will be riding along to help anyone in need. The weather may be unpredictable this time of year, so dress accordingly.

Starting from the North Toronto Chinese Alliance Church in Richmond Hill, we continue our training rides with another leisurely meander around the Richmond Hill and Markham area, including the very scenic Wilcox Lake. The route is a bit longer but flatter than last week's ride. For novice riders, our ride coaches will help you with basic cycling skills like shifting, group riding, etc.

For our third training ride, we head to the west end of the city. This is one of only two training rides not starting from a church. Instead, we start from the North Parking Lot of the Kipling TTC Station (Auckland Rd and Subway Crescent. Our 50km route takes us through some very interesting urban landscape along Lakeshore Boulevard, until we arrive at the foot of the Credit River. We then head north towards the historic town of Streetsville. On our return journey, we ride through Toronto's Centennial Park. Check out the golf course under the power lines!

After a week of riding from the west end of the city, we return to Richmond Hill for our fourth training ride. Our 51km route starts from North Toronto Chinese Alliance Church to the beautiful historic village of Kleinburg, a popular destination for weekend cyclists and tourists alike. The route is incredibly scenic but has more climbs than previous rides. Again, our training ride coaches will be on hand to help novice riders with cycling skills. PLEASE NOTE THE EARLIER STARTING TIME OF 9:00AM.

One of the most scenic of our training rides, we start from Cornerstone Chinese Alliance Church in Markham. We head north through the historic tourist destination Unionville to Musselman's Lake, one of the most popular destination for cyclists. On any given Saturday hundreds of cyclists will pass through the area! And for good reason too. The lake is gorgeous! Grab a snack from the Cedar Beach Variety Store before returning to CCAC. This route has more sustained climbs, but not difficult if paced properly. The return leg is a long descent through York Region along the newly paved-Ninth Line. It was used for the 2015 Love in Motion Granfondo.

After the cancelled training ride last week, we return to more seasonal weather this weekend. This Saturday's revised training ride route takes us from Rexdale Alliance Church (2459 Islington Ave, Toronto), around Pearson International Airport, through Mississauga and Brampton and return to Rexdale for a relatively flat 72km ride. There are only 204m of ascent with the maximum grade only at 3.5%. The start time is 8am at the church parking lot.

Finally, we have our first 100km "metric century" training ride. For some of our novice riders, this may be the first time riding 100km, and it's quite an accomplishment already! Although the route is the longest so far, it is not be missed. Starting from Rexdale Alliance Church, we head west around the Pearson International Airport along Convair Road, the worse-kept-secret among weekend cyclists, but largely unknown to the public. At the right time, you can catch a glimpse of airplanes taking off and landing. We then head north through Mississauga until reaching Terra Cotta in Halton Hills. The outbound leg is a gentle but long climb, so pace yourself accordingly. Our training ride coaches and support vehicle will be on hand to help cyclists with food, drinks and mechanical issues.

Not getting enough rides before Love in Motion? Well, let's ride to Niagara Falls then. Starting at Prince's Gate on the east side of Exhibition Place, we'll begin our ride along the Waterfront Trail with a beautiful view of Lake Ontario. The route is mostly flat, with most climbs coming in the last 30km between Niagara-on-the-Lake and Niagara Falls (so save your energy). After all the training rides that you have done, this 150km ride will be...easy. Our SAG wagon and sweepers will be out to help with any riders in need. We will try to stay in a group as much as possible. Upon arriving in Niagara Falls, we'll return to Exhibition Place by Go Train in the evening (bring your Presto Card!) MORE DETAILS ABOUT THIS RIDE WILL BE ANNOUNCED LATER IN THE SPRING.